


nothing is holding you back now.

by sanctify (orphan_account)



Series: ☆ strong in the real way - marinette week 2020 ☆ [6]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Gen, Marinette Week, Marinette Week 2020, Tikki motherhenning our girl, vague season 3 finale spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:15:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23397598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/sanctify
Summary: what do you want to do? you're the master of you.
Relationships: Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug & Tikki
Series: ☆ strong in the real way - marinette week 2020 ☆ [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1677403
Comments: 4
Kudos: 34





	nothing is holding you back now.

**Author's Note:**

> this fic ended up being way different from my original plan for it and im like it's 2 am and im incoherent so like have this yes thanks snzzzz
> 
> day 6: tikki

Tikki shook her head fondly as her Chosen started another one of her rants. She was catastrophizing, this time, about the hat contest that M. Agreste was hosting at Collège Françoise Dupont. Marinette has such an active imagination, Tikki loves it most of the time but also dreads it other times. This is one of those moments. Marinette is usually so on top of things, her mind working a mile a minute to come up with a perfect plan of action in her everyday life, and the perfect use for the Lucky Charms that she conjures. That kind of skill isn’t something that her Ladybugs magically receive after putting the earrings on, it’s something they develop over time. But Marinette? She’s a natural. From the moment she’d gained the confidence, from that parachute, Marinette has never stopped being amazing.

She is also… quite amazing at thinking of the worst possible outcomes when it comes to her infatuation with this Adrien Agreste boy.

_Sigh._ The teenage years. Always such an emotionally tumultuous time.

Knowing Marinette, everything will be alright in the end. She’s confident in her Chosen. Tikki’s sure she’s going to win this.

***

Hours later, after Marinette wins, Tikki has to huff in pride at the way Marinette made sure the work was authentic and 100% hers.

Marinette really is a cut above the rest.

* * *

“Marinette, you stay in that bed right now, I’ll print your homework for you. Knowing you, you’ll find something else to do when you’re supposed to be sleeping!”

“Oh, thank you, Tikki. Do you know what file it is?”

“Yes, I do. Now, shoo. Go to sleep.”

“Okay, okay. Goodnight, Tikki.”

“Goodnight, Marinette.”

Once she hears the soft snores of the teen, Tikki heaves a big sigh of relief, at least big enough for her tiny body. Marinette’s being stretched thin again. She has too many commitments, too many obligations. She wishes Marinette wouldn’t take on so much. But Marinette can’t say ‘no’, Marinette can’t pass up the opportunity to help. She’s too good.

Outside of schoolwork and family obligations, she also has her class rep duties, she makes commissions on the side to save money for university and for her fabrics, she has babysitting duties (both paid and unpaid, the latter makes Tikki fume), plus… she’s one-half of Paris’ first and last line of defense against Le Papillon.

Tikki wishes Marinette would say ‘no’. But Marinette doesn’t. And Tikki wants to support her in her endeavors, but she knows that Marinette can’t possibly handle all the stress.

(Not to mention that she’s got bullying problems on the side, too. Not a day passes where Tikki doesn’t want to appear before Chat Noir and tell him about all the things that liar in their class has been telling and doing against Marinette, His Lady. But, no. Tikki must maintain the balance that Marinette has established. She is creation, yes. That is usually connected to positive things, but she can create terrible things as well, and her holder doesn’t deserve that.)

Marinette mumbles in her sleep. Tikki turns the printer on.

She’ll just continue to support Marinette like this. 

After the papers have been printed, Tikki checks Marinette’s phone. Sets the alarm to an hour and 30 minutes before the first bell rings.

The last thing Tikki wants is for Marinette to be late and miss the opportunity to pass these flyers around.

* * *

“Am I being dramatic, Tikki?” Marinette asks, face-down on her bed and dead-tired.

“No, you’re not.” Tikki frowns at the dejected aura surrounding Marinette. She doesn’t like this. Marinette is safe from Akumatization for now, sure. These emotions aren’t enough to catch Le Papillon’s attention, hopefully, but they can fester and grow into something painful that’ll leave her holder susceptible to being tempted into their enemy’s side. It’s happened once already, Papillon Écarlate sending an Akuma into Marinette’s purse, Tikki’s place. The kwami shudders at the memory.

“I have… so much work to do… but I don’t feel like working on anything…” Marinette groans. “I just want to sleep forever, Tikki,” Marinette’s voice is muffled by her pillow. “I’m so tired and I have no idea why.”

“What about a break?”

“A break? How?”

“Take a page out of Chat Noir’s book. Transform. Run across the rooftops. Burn some steam.”

Marinette’s eyes are comically wide. “Are you telling me to shirk my responsibilities, Tikki?” Marinette gasps. But Tikki knows her chosen’s tone of voice. Marinette is teasing. Tikki smiles at her ability to still be able to joke. There’s hope for her yet.

“I mean, you deserve it! You’ve just started Guardian training, you know. We need to spend more time as Ladybug so that you can get even more attuned to the other powers in our arsenal,” Tikki explains, joking as well. Fu’s already mentioned that Marinette will not be doing the same training he was subjected to.

“Guardian, huh,” Marinette says, smile turning into a small frown. “I wonder what that’ll mean for me. I wonder what Maître Fu has in store.” She bites her thumbnail, a nervous habit she’s picked up recently. “Shouldn’t I be telling Chat Noir all about this?”

Once upon a time, Tikki would have said no. But she remembers last month when Marinette was so tired, so stressed, that Tikki had to protect her from a butterfly. She didn’t want a repeat of that moment. Sure, Marinette’s avoided being Akummatized four times now, but that doesn’t mean it ever stops being terrifying.

“It’s up to you, Marinette. But personally, I think you should.”

“I guess you’re right,” Marinette smiles, “I’ll tell him the next time we have patrol.”

Tikki nods. “Okay, but are you going to transform tonight or not?”

Marinette laughs. “Okay, okay. Let’s do it. How long am I allowed out, Tikki?”

Tikki giggles, “I’d say as long as you need to, but you have something quite important to attend to tomorrow afternoon right?”

“Oh!” Marinette gasps excitedly. “I almost forgot!”

Tikki shakes her head, “You can be so scatterbrained sometimes, Marinette,” she teases.

“Hey!” Her chosen laughs.

“Let’s go?”

“Yes, let’s. Tikki, transforme moi!”

* * *

Tikki doesn’t know how Marinette’s going to balance all her work and other obligations with saving Paris and being the Guardian of the Miraculous… but Tikki’s not going to be lenient anymore. She’s going to have to put her foot down on certain things so that Marinette doesn’t overwork herself to exhaustion or falls victim to all the stress that’s piling up inside her.

If she has to get Adrien into this by deliberately revealing herself to him when Marinette least expects it, then so be it.

**Author's Note:**

> twitter: [reflekdoll](http://twitter.com/reflekdoll)


End file.
